2013 AAAS Annual Meeting
Call for Symposium Proposals

The Beauty and Benefits of Science

Date and Location:
14-18 February, Boston MA

Deadline to Submit Proposals: 30 April

The Annual Meeting of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is the most important general science venue for a growing segment of scientists and engineers who are interested in the latest advances as well as multidisciplinary topics and the influence of science and technology on how we live today. Thousands of leading scientists, engineers, educators, and policy-makers interact with one another and with hundreds of members from national and international media. In fact, the growing number of international attendees attests to the growing international nature of this gathering. More than 150 sessions spread across about a dozen tracks are usually presented at the Annual Meeting.

The online submission site for symposium proposals is now open. You will receive updates only about the 2013 meeting. The deadline for submission is Monday, 30 April 2012, 11:59 p.m. PT. Decisions will be announced in July.

The 2013 meeting will be held at the John B. Hynes Veterans Memorial Convention Center.

To receive updates about the meeting, send an e-mail message to meetings@aaas.org with the following text in the subject line: ‘AAAS Annual Meeting Updates.’ Include your name and affiliation in the body of the message.

2013 Theme

The theme points to the “unreasonable effectiveness” of the scientific enterprise in creating economic growth, solving societal problems, and satisfying the essential human drive to understand the world in which we live.

That phrase, “unreasonable effectiveness,” was coined in 1960 by physicist Eugene Wigner, whose memorable essay, “The Unreasonable Effectiveness of Mathematics in the Natural Sciences” explored the duality of mathematics — both beautiful unto itself, and also eminently practical, often in unexpected ways.

The same duality exists in all fields of science. Basic research can be seen as a quest to understand the beauty that underlies our universe and the myriad phenomena that it contains. Einstein’s theory of general relativity describes the cosmological evolution of the universe; those features not explained by it may ultimately be understood as consequences of string theory or its generalizations. Darwin’s law of natural selection is a principle so powerful that, let loose on the unimaginable richness of carbon-based chemistry (RNA not least), it explains the origin and subsequent wild diversity of evolving life.

At the same time, in virtually every field of science, fundamental research can blossom into applicable research that accomplishes useful, practical goals and creates better lives. In Wigner’s time, it was possible to believe in a “linear model,” where pure, curiosity-driven research “led to” applied research, which in turn “led to” the development of products by industry.

We now appreciate the reality of a much richer set of connections. Fundamental scientific understanding creates whole landscapes on which practical applications may flourish. Basic research may create territories that, only later, become the real estate for new industries, as quantum mechanics and solid-state physics have provided the platform for the semiconductor, computer, and Internet industries. There can also be leaps from basic research to application in a seemingly single bound, such as from number theory to practical encryption, or page rank algorithm to Google.

Equally important are the cases where the “pull” of environmental or societal problems drives fundamentally new basic research. Recognition of a warming planet continues to drive our need for deeper understanding of climate science, of complex ecological webs, of basic plant biology, and much else.

The program of the 2013 AAAS Annual Meeting thus highlights the rich and complicated connections between basic and applied research, and how they bring about both practical benefits and the beauty of pure understanding.

Proposal Submission

The AAAS Annual Meeting is the most important general science venue for a growing segment of scientists and engineers who are interested in the latest advances as well as multidisciplinary topics and the influence of science and technology on how we live today. Thousands of leading scientists, engineers, educators, and policy-makers interact with one another and with hundreds of members from national and international media. In fact, the growing number of international attendees attests to the growing international nature of this gathering. About 160 sessions spread across a dozen tracks are usually presented at the Annual Meeting.

Proposal decisions will be announced in early July after the completion of external review and final selection by the AAAS Annual Meeting Scientific Program Committee. Symposium proposal organizers are encouraged to be creative and to focus on the uniqueness and interdisciplinary nature of the Annual Meeting.

The AAAS Annual Meeting Scientific Program Committee is particularly interested in proposals that highlight the theme. However, proposals that are not directly related to the theme will be considered if they involve ground-breaking areas of research, new and exciting developments, or cross-cutting activities in support of science, technology, and education. Successful proposals are characterized by interesting, topical subjects that are thoughtfully developed and include capable and articulate speakers from a broad range of institutions who represent the diversity of science and society. Proposals that cover policy are expected to primarily focus on the cutting-edge aspects of the scientific research driving policy in that particular subject, rather than focusing wholly on the issues beyond the science.

About AAAS

AAAS is the world’s largest general scientific society, and publisher of the journal, Science as well as Science Translational Medicine and Science Cell Signaling. AAAS was founded in 1848, and includes some 262 affiliated societies and academies of science, serving 10 million individuals. Science has the largest paid circulation of any peer-reviewed general science journal in the world, with an estimated total readership of 1 million. The non-profit AAAS is open to all and fulfills its mission to “advance science and serve society” through initiatives in science policy; international programs; science education; and more.